What kind of weight training do you find enhances your martial skills? What do you stay away from? Do you go heavy on your leg work to help ground and strengthen your stances? Do you use heavy weights and few reps or light weights and high reps? For upper body, do you do primarily bag work, pushups, dips? I read you need to be careful not to add to much bulk that could be restrictive. Your thoughts?

1/15/2003 2:37pm,

Fatality Dragon

Well from my experince, I would says do A LOT of free weight work out (push up, sit up, pull up, etc...) and cardio work out. Those two are proably the best thing for you. However if you REALLY want to do weight training then only do VERY light weight and high reps and stretch a lot. For my legs, I simply go for a run in mountain, rock climbing, and swimming. For my arms, I rock climb and swim in river. That is pretty much what I do and my body is not over musclar but slender and buffy. However I am not strongest one around but I am fast and have high endurance level.

"I would rather to admit I am a lousy student instead of saying I am the best student because once you thinks you are the best, you see no reason to continue learning"

1/15/2003 2:44pm,

Justme

Dead Lizard - Thanks. I was thinking along the same lines. My problem is I am old. 48. Feeling it more and more everyday.

1/15/2003 2:56pm,

Fatality Dragon

"I am so old" That is SO PATHETIC! There are some 90 years old man out there who still can run a marathon and practice martial arts and rip people apart. Such as Massaki Hatasumi, Stephen Hayes, Jin Kim Pal, Toddy, and other people. So get off your rocking chair and go get some fresh air.

"I would rather to admit I am a lousy student instead of saying I am the best student because once you thinks you are the best, you see no reason to continue learning"

1/15/2003 3:01pm,

The Wastrel

FatalityDragon,
That was pathetic. You don't have any idea what it is to age. Some people are lucky enough to avoid persistent injury, but I'll bet Justme has more than a few knee, shoulder and maybe back problems related to his time in the infantry. Some may have the luxury of husbanding their bodies carefully in support of their sport or their leisure time, but tell me how you think you'd feel after five years of jumping out of airplanes, humping a 100lb ruck, or carrying a rifle at the ready for months at a time (sounds easy, right?).

**The most miraculous power that can verifiably be attributed to "chi" is its ability to be all things to virtually all people, depending on what version of the superstition they are attempting to defend at any given moment.**

1/15/2003 3:06pm,

Justme

"That is SO PATHETIC" - Yeh, I know. Two kids, job and wife keep getting in the way of my training. I should adjust my values! How dare I put them before pushups! Heading out the door for a walk...no I mean run.

1/15/2003 3:10pm,

Justme

Wastrel - Thanks. No jumping out of airplanes though. Rapelled out of helicopters, fell off of a deucin half, humped a 60.

1/15/2003 3:18pm,

8t88

Body-weight calistenics. I find body-weight calistenics are better than weight-training for MA. There's less stress on the joints than weights, but admittedly fewer pretty results. Add in cardio and stretching. If you want all three, then I find any kind of wrestling is great for all the above as well as developing technique.

The other critical aspect I think is conditioning. This includes cardio, but I'm also thinking impact training. It's nice to have a lightning-quick, incredibly-accurate haymaker that comes out of nowhere; but if the first time to throw it at someone, you also manage to break your knuckles on his chin, then it's not going to help you too much. I just practice hitting stuff with whatever part of my body I expect to use as a bludgeon in the near future. Heavy bags, dummies, trees, puppies, etc... .

8t88

1/15/2003 3:18pm,

The Wastrel

Hah, I was all legs too, but I tried hard for Air Assault. I never fell off of a deuce, but I did have to jump onto a driverless 5 ton rolling down a hill into rice paddy. 60? Must have been nice. Actually only maybe 1 or 2 guys on my squad had to hump 100.

**The most miraculous power that can verifiably be attributed to "chi" is its ability to be all things to virtually all people, depending on what version of the superstition they are attempting to defend at any given moment.**

1/15/2003 3:23pm,

Fatality Dragon

Ok then you could have explained me your situtation and let me know. How about run a mile every morning before going to work? How about take your family to hike or something one time every week or two? How about do something like that?

"I would rather to admit I am a lousy student instead of saying I am the best student because once you thinks you are the best, you see no reason to continue learning"